Brighton & Hove, film and cinema

The adjoining towns of Brighton and Hove on England's south coast were the site of some of the earliest activity in the film industry anywhere in the world. Several of the important pioneers lived and worked here—William Friese-Greene, Esmé Collings, James Williamson, George Albert Smith—perhaps demonstrating the proposition that a critical mass of interest and talent in one place drives technology forward. 
        Others filmed or settled here: Robert Paul and Charles Urban among the most notable. In later years, a number of of the greatest British actors and actresses lived in Brighton, including Laurence Olivier and Flora Robson.
        Some of the earliest studios were built here and, given the proximity of the area to London and its popularity over the previous century since the Prince Regent made a home in Brighton, it is unclear exactly why it did not continue to develop as the centre of the British film industry—in preference (or addition) to the Elstree/Borehamwood area.
         This section not only records some of the micro-history of Brighton and Hove's early contribution to the media but explores the continuing cinema heritage of what is now the unified city of Brighton & Hove. A directory of the city's cinemas reflects the more general patterns of the rise and fall of big screen entertainment.

 Brighton & Hove's contribution to film history: A chronology
 Cinemas in Brighton: An introduction
 Cinemas in Sussex: The wider context
 Checklist of Brighton Cinemas by date of opening and closing
 Brighton Cinema Directory
 Films made in the Brighton & Hove area

This is a continuing project, so any comments would be welcome. Among numerous sources, I am particularly indebted to the following
John Barnes: The Beginnings of the Cinema in England 1894-1901 for much of the detail about the earliest years,
Timothy Carder: The Encyclopaedia of Brighton for general information, including some cinema references,
Kelly's Directories, Kinematograph Yearbooks and various local history works in my own collection and in Brighton Public Library.

FURTHER INTEREST
The newly refurbished Brighton Museum re-opened in summer 2002 with an exhibition entitled Kiss and Kill about film-making in Brighton. An illustrated book was published to coincide with the exhibition.

Brighton & Hove Libraries' Brighton History Centre (housed in the museum building) has an extensive collection of local history material. A project to digitise the photographic collection is already appearing on the website. We are grateful for permission to use some of these photographs.
The My Brighton & Hove website has a collection of pages about local cinemas.
The website about the history of still photography in Brighton 1841-1910 is worth visiting.